Made of Iron
by Blackrose Malfoy
Summary: Narcissa sacrifices herself in order to save her son from becoming a Death Eater. One-shot. Written for Always Padfoot's It's A Tragedy Competition and AnnaRavenheart's Within Temptation Competition.


**Author's Note: Hello everyone! :) This fic is loosely based on the Within Temptation song Iron. (However, you don't have to know the song for this fic to make sense.) This was written for AlwaysPadfoot's It's A Tragedy Competition and also AnnaRavenheart's Within Temptation Competition (although I missed the deadline for that one. Oops.).  
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**This is my first time writing a family-centric fic so please leave a review after you've finished to let me know how I did! I would greatly appreciate it! Happy reading everyone! :)**

**************Disclaimer: Harry Potter and everything in the Harry Potter universe belongs to J. K. Rowling, Bloomsbury, Scholastic, and Warner Bros (and maybe some others I forgot to mention). If this information is not correct I apologize. (I looked it up to make sure this disclaimer was accurate and that's what I found.) I make no money from this. This (writing fanfiction for the best book series of all time!) is just something I do for fun. (So please don't sue me!)**

Made of Iron

Narcissa woke from her nightmare with a start. Instinctively, she reached out to take her husband, Lucius, in her arms to calm her fears, but he wasn't there. He hadn't been there for months. He was locked away in Azkaban while she was left alone to endure the horrors which he had left behind. The horror of the day was that today her only son, Draco, would be receiving his Mark. Her son would be unwillingly forced to follow in the footsteps of his father at only sixteen years old.

When Lucius had received his sentence she'd known this day was coming; it was inevitable. The Dark Lord would insist that her son be punished for his father's failures. Narcissa would never allow that to happen. She couldn't. As Draco's mother it was her job to protect him and since Lucius was unable to help them now she knew she was on her own.

She took a deep, shuddering breath as she climbed out of bed for what she knew would be the last time. Narcissa was no fool; she was perfectly aware that if she were to succeed in saving Draco it would surely mean her own death, but that was a price she was more than willing to pay.

All her life the people around her had underestimated her resolve and her strength. But, when she truly put her mind to something she was an unyielding, unstoppable force. Despite her outward constant ladylike appearance on the inside she was made of iron. And today she was going to prove that to them all.

She made her way to the full length mirror in her room after she'd dressed herself. It came as no surprise to her that physically she barely recognized the reflection which greeted her. The trials and tribulations she had lived through since the return of the Dark Lord were more than enough to age a person beyond their years. Her hair now shown strands of gray scattered here and there, and if you looked closely enough you could see the slight wrinkles forming around her eyes. But, even with those changes, she was still far from being old. She was far too young to die, or so her appearance would have you believe.

It was true that she did not wish to die; she had never wanted to be a martyr. She wanted to live well into old age, to watch Draco grow into a strong, proud man like her husband had once been, and one day watch him raise children of his own; but it seemed that life had no intention of letting what she wanted ever become anything more than unrealized dreams. No matter how much she wished for things to be different she knew that nothing could be done to change her fate. Her dreams did not matter in this life and they could not save her now. Nothing could save her. She was going to sacrifice herself to save her son.

One last time Narcissa Malfoy gazed into the mirror and was pleased by what she saw there. She saw a strong woman, steadfast in her convictions. She would not be defeated today. She could not be defeated today. She was made of iron and she would not be broken.

Narcissa stepped outside of her room and made her way down the hall as silently as she possibly could. She paused in front of the door to Draco's room. She knew this would be the last time she would ever speak to her son. There were so many things she wanted to say to him. She wanted to tell him that she loved him and she would always be with him in some way no matter what happened. She wanted to tell him to be strong. She wanted to make him promise her that he would survive the coming war. But, she knew her time was limited and she would need to stick to the point; she needed to tell him to run.

Narcissa opened the door as quietly as possible and quickly slipped inside. Draco wiped the tears from his eyes in hopes that she hadn't noticed they'd been there in the first place. Her son was trying so hard to be strong despite his fear about his upcoming initiation. No matter how much he pretended to want to be a Death Eater she knew that deep down he no longer had any desire to follow the Dark Lord. She was going to make sure he would never have to.

"I thought you were Bellatrix," he said simply, his voice void of all emotions.

"Draco, I want you to listen to me. I want you to run," she explained hurriedly, "Get to a safe place as quickly as you can. Find someone you trust and stay close to them until this war is over. I wish I could help you more but I'm afraid once you leave here you're going to be on your own."

"What?" he asked, confused, "Mother, what are you talking about? If I run he'll kill us all. I can't leave you here. This is my responsibility, not yours."

Narcissa knew their time was running short; if he did not leave soon all hope would be lost. She took a deep breath and summoned the harshest tone she could muster under the circumstances. "Draco Lucius Malfoy, I am your mother and you will obey me. Now do as I say and run," she instructed sternly.

Draco hesitated. For a brief moment she thought he was going to refuse, but after a quick deliberation she could tell he had decided against arguing with her further. She knew he, like her, had so many things he wanted to say but he knew he couldn't. The look his eyes held proved that the gravity of the situation was finally starting to sink in. It was for her as well.

It was almost time; Bellatrix would be there any minute and then the war, or at least their portion of it, would really begin.

Narcissa made her way over to her son and gave him one last hug. "I love you, Draco. No matter what happens please know that I love you," she whispered as she released him, "Now, go."

Draco opened his mouth to speak but after a few seconds he snapped it shut and shook his head. Narcissa knew that he'd been contemplating telling her that he loved her too. She wasn't surprised when he didn't.

If he said those few words, which Malfoys rarely said, that would be his indirect admission that this was their final goodbye. She could tell that he was not yet willing to admit that this was their final goodbye. Narcissa would have expected no different from him.

"Go," she said softly, in a gentle mothering tone. It was a tone she knew Draco had come to know well over the years, even though she had only ever used it in private.

"Okay," he replied quietly, obviously unsure of what he was supposed to say or do in a situation like this.

Just as he prepared to apparate away the door to his room burst open to reveal her wretched, deranged sister. Narcissa stepped in front of Draco with her wand drawn before Bellatrix had even completely opened the door.

As Bellatrix entered the room her eyes widened with surprise. "What is the meaning of this?" she asked, immediately suspicious.

Narcissa didn't bother to answer her sister's question; there would have been no point in doing so anyway.

Instead she spoke only to her son. "Draco, go," she instructed quietly, her eyes never leaving Bellatrix.

She watched the realization of what was about to happen settle into Bellatrix's evil eyes. "You mean to defy our Lord!?" she yelled, her voice filled with contempt.

"I mean to protect my son," Narcissa growled.

Bellatrix snarled in response. "You'll pay for this Cissy, you both will!" her sister screamed, "Reducto!"

"Protego!" Narcissa countered.

As Bellatrix dodged the curse which had rebounded at her, Narcissa again spoke to her son. "Draco, run!" she cried desperately.

Thankfully the sound of her terrified voice seemed to snap him out of the stupor he had fallen into. Narcissa heard him whisper one simple phrase to her before the resounding crack of him apparating away rang throughout the room.

Immediately after he had disappeared Bellatrix sent the most evil of all the unforgivable curses in her direction. However, this time when Narcissa moved to defend herself she was a mere second too slow; this time the killing curse struck. Narcissa's time in this world had ended.

And just like that Narcissa Malfoy fell to floor; her lifeless eyes still open, now seeing nothing because her soul had left her body. All it had taken was one flash of green light to end a lifetime which should have stretched on for many years yet to come.

Some would call her a hero; others would call her a traitor, but no matter what anyone would call her one thing about her would always remain true. Even in death, Narcissa Malfoy was made of iron.

**Additional Author's Note: Thank you to the couple reviewers who reminded me that AK cannot be blocked by Protego. The error has been corrected. :)**


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